DimitrisPassas-TapTheLine Reviews

Equinox (2020)

A second-rate occult mystery from Denmark.

[4/10 · 12 January 2021]

During the last fifteen years, a vast array of Nordic crime fiction television shows have been aired and some of them acquired legendary status while others failed to meet the audiences' high demands. Equinox is a 2020 Danish production that belongs to the latter group, despite the carefully selected cast and interesting cinematography as it lacks a coherent plot, the story is bland, and the supernatural element is not harmonically integrated into the narrative. The producers attempted to create a series that would combine many different genres such as horror, crime, mystery, and whodunit, but the final result is less than satisfying as Equinox is a show that resists strict genre categorization for all the wrong reasons. The horror dimension, which supposedly would make this production stand out from other Scandinavian crime shows, is handled amateurishly and fails to convince the viewer who wants more than a few dream sequences where everything is foggy and an ancient monster-like figure lurks in the shadows. The mystery part and whodunit are almost non-existent as everything is explained in the first two or three episodes while the villain is clearly pointed out in the middle of the show. What is left, is a lukewarm storyline with many sub-plots that are so cliched and simplistic that become almost laughable.

The protagonist is Astrid (Danica Curcic) whose sister, Ida (Karoline Hamm), disappeared without a trace twenty years ago and nobody has ever heard of her since. Ida vanished on her graduation day as she, along with her best friends, Jakob, Amelia, and Falke, was riding a truck heading to a place where they could celebrate their last day at school. Today, Astrid is severely traumatized by this event and when she receives a phone call from Jakob in her radio show claiming that he knows what happened to Ida, she decides to return to Copenhagen, where her family is still living, to investigate the case that haunts her since her childhood. She will have to overcome her father's reluctance to help her in her endeavor and she will be shocked when she learns that Jakob has committed suicide soon after he made that phone call to her. Astrid will approach every single person connected to her sister and also her mother who has separated from her dad and now lives on her own in the old family's house.

The story is narrated through flashbacks in the past where the audience witnesses what happened soon before and soon after Ida's disappearance, while in the present timeline we follow Astrid's lonely quest to uncover the truth about her sister's fate. She is insistent and determined to get to the bottom of it because her bond with Ida was very strong as we see in some of the flashback scenes. Danica Curcic (The Absent One, Nobel, The Mist) delivers a decent performance as Astrid and the pain that the character feels is evident in the Serbian actress's facial expressions and body language. Veteran Danish thespian Lars Brygmann (Dicte, Borgen, A Funny Man) is splendid, as always, in the role of Astrid's father who tries to protect his daughter from truths that would devastate her. Karoline Hamm (Darkness: Those Who Kill) and Fanny Leander Bornedal (Journal 64, Bron/Broen) prove that there is a bright future for Danish cinema and television as they are both great in their respective roles.

The main problem with Equinox is its weak screenplay and implausible story which is narrated in a dull way and without the proper pacing. The climax in the final episode is thoroughly disappointing as there is nothing left to be explained while the revelation of the culprit is so predictable that leaves a bitter taste to the audience. From my experience, the best TV shows are those which are based on novels and this has been proved on numerous occasions in the past. Unfortunately, this is not the case here and it shows. This is not a series that you will remember for a long time after watching and it seems that lately, Netflix opts for mediocre productions that taint the Nordic noir genre as a whole. Let's hope that this will be the last of inferior Scandinavian productions and that we will soon watch shows analogous to those that made this genre our beloved one.

The Lobster (2015)

"Ti einai afto pou to lene agapi".

[10/10 · 12 January 2021]

Yorgos Lanthimos is definitely the most popular contemporary Greek auteur and his films have all been well-received by the global audiences and critics as well. He began as a video clip and TV commercials director while he created his first feature film, Kinetta, in 2005. Nevertheless, Lanthimos's first major success that put him in the spotlight was Dogtooth, a daring allegory focusing on family relationship dynamics and their effects on the individual. Domestic oppression, free will or the lack of it, and distortion of reality through the misuse of language were the central themes in this compelling movie which has been nominated for Best Foreign Language Film of the Year in the 2011 Oscar Awards. Furthermore, Dogtooth signified the beginning of a thriving collaboration between Lanthimos and screenwriter Efthimis Filippou, a partnership that delivered some of the most intriguing movies of the following decade. The Lobster is a 2015 production in which Lanthimos and Filippou exceed themselves and present a monumental parable about the nature of love set in a dystopian alternative universe where a tyranny of companionship dominates the people and forces them to mate with a fellow human. The inventive storyline is combined with a well-paced plot that moves forward handily and stunning photography that grips the audience from the beginning until the end. The cast is excellent with Colin Farell, who would also participate in Lanthimos's later film, The Killing of a Sacred Deer, in the role of David, a timid man who struggles to survive in an absurd world where the fate of each person is decided by an omnipotent system which possesses supernatural powers. Farell's portrayal of David is measured and consistent, building a character who lacks any heroic dimension, while at the same time retaining the characteristics that define him as a human such as fear, compassion, or even cruelty.

Being a single, middle-aged man, David is arrested and sent to an institution where he has to stay for a defined period of time in order to mate with a woman. The punishment for not succeeding at this simple task is his transformation into an animal of his own liking. David's choice is a lobster because they live for over 100 years, he has blue blood, like aristocrats, and is fertile for as long as he lives. He is accompanied by a dog, his brother who couldn't manage to find a partner so he suffered the consequences. The institution's director has set strict rules for all the guests/prisoners who can extend their abidance by hunting the loners, a group of people living in the nearby woods who don't conform to the existing status quo and choose to live by their own rules. David will soon get acquainted with several people who share his predicament and he will attempt to approach a woman who seemingly has no feelings about anyone or anything. The result of this relationship will be dreadful and the protagonist will have no other solution but to escape the institution and live as a loner.

In Lanthimos's fictional universe, humans are defined by their deficiencies. There is the woman with the nosebleeds, the man with a limp foot, the heartless woman, the blind woman, and so on. These imperfections are central to the construction of the peoples' identity and determine their choice of a possible partner. Shared life means shared pain. Thus, several people try to imitate the defects of the others during their stay in the institution, even if it is a lie. It is the only way to attract the attention of their prospective mates and they also know that the alternative is their conversion into an animal with all that it entails. It is a desperate situation, one that forces people to behave in ways that they couldn't imagine. When David joins the loners he quickly comprehends that the suffocating rules that made him escape from the institution are also present there. He is not allowed to have sex with another person, only to masturbate alone, and every form of companionship is prohibited in this new environment. His romantic entanglement with the short-sighted woman, played by Rachel Weisz, is now interpreted as a rebellious act of defiance against the new rules rather than a submission to the dominant norm.

The cinematography is sublime and fits the story perfectly. In the first part, we are witnessing the everyday life in the institution, a place that looks like a luxury hotel while in the second one, we are transferred to the much more primitive landscape where the loners live. This contrast of scenery adds up to an overall polarized feeling that is exuded from the story due to its bizarre foundation. In a way, the second part of The Lobster constitutes an inversion of the first one, an opposite image that enhances and magnifies the importance of the love story that lies in the center of the film. The use of music furnishes the story even further and I was particularly moved by the presence of two greek songs, "Apo mesa pethamenos" performed by Danae Stratigopoulou and, of course, "Ti einai afto pou to lene agapi" by Tonis Maroudas and Sophia Loren. As a Greek, I am proud that a director of this caliber is a compatriot of mine and I feel the same about the screenwriter, Efthimis Filippou, who wrote a story of unprecedented beauty and craftsmanship. Lanthimos has established his name as the greatest living Greek auteur and his movies are always something different, transcendent visual experiences that are bound to make the audiences think and feel intensely

The Other Me (2019–2023)

Season 2 review.

[8/10 · 30 December 2020]

WARNING: The article below contains spoilers.

In 2016, Sotiris Tsafoulias directed the Greek serial-killer motion picture The Other Me, featuring a plot that involved a perpetrator who murdered his victims in a brutal manner and left behind in the crime scenes quotes of the ancient Greek philosopher and mathematician, Pythagoras. The screenplay was co-authored by the well-known Cypriot crime fiction author, Tefkros Michaelides, who also wrote a novella, Periptosis Aftodikias, which inspired the creators of the film as far as the main storyline is concerned. The Other Me was a huge commercial success here in Greece and critics hailed the movie as one of the most compelling native productions of the genre. Three years later, the same team aired an informal sequel to the film in the form of television series which was distributed by the Greek broadcasting service, Cosmote TV, under the title The Other Me: Lost Souls (full review here). The show adopted the same plot trope of a serial-killer murder who wreaks havoc in Athens and whose murders are imitations of the six labors of Theseus, a legendary figure of Greek mythology. The protagonist in both the movie and the show is the criminology professor, Dimitris Lainis, a reserved and quiet character who is cooperating with the authorities in order to solve a series of disturbing atrocities and arrest villains who seem to enjoy puzzles and playing cat-and-mouse games with the police.

The story begins when a young woman, student at the University in which Lainis is lecturing, is found murdered in a hotel room, strangled and stabbed 21 times in her torso. Ilias Velissaratos (Constantine Markoulakis) is arrested for the murder as he wakes up in the hotel room where the killing took place while his fingerprints are all over the murder weapon. Lainis is convinced that his friend and colleague is innocent and immediately contacts the retired chief of the Homicide Unit, Apostolis Barasopoulos (Manos Vakousis) to ask for his help. Velissaratos insists that he is being framed due to his recent appointment as a nominee for the upcoming elections for the University's new dean. Lainis suspects that something is amiss regarding the University's financial situation and he is soon drawn into a nightmarish scenario when a second student is found murdered in a grisly way.

At the same time, a new chief is appointed to Athens Homicide Unit, Nikos Vanortas (Tasos Nousias), a seasoned investigator who is transferred from the Narcotics Division. Vanortas has a hard time trusting his inner thoughts to the rest of the team and seems to be rigid and impatient when it comes to others obeying his orders. His Lieutenant, Pantelis Sklavis (Petros Lagoutis) distrusts him and the cooperation between them comes to a halt when Vanortas asks him to something unthinkable. The Unit, as a whole, are surveilling a group of thugs who run a prostitution ring in the city which is led by a mysterious kingpin known as "The Reptile", a man no one has ever seen and his identity remains a well-hidden secret among the city's heavyweight criminals.

There are two main plot threads that merge into one as the plot evolves and the show reaches its shattering climax in the sublime final episode. The first one revolves around the University's elections and the second one focuses on the inner workings of The Reptile's gang. The audience witnesses a fair amount of double-crossing and backstabbing as the story ends up being a battle of wits between the authorities and the enigmatic Reptile. There is a lot of suspense and tension as well as a number of effective plot twists, especially after the fifth episode and the viewers should brace themselves for a grand twist concerning the true identity of the Reptile. The show ends in a cliffhanger and I hope that we will have the chance to watch what happens next in a new, third season.

The performances are more than decent and once again Dadakaridis nails his role as the autistic criminalist who becomes a pawn in a game that he struggles to comprehend before it's too late. Nousias and Lagoutis are convincing as the police officers in charge of the whole operation while Vakousis has a much smaller role than he had in the previous season. Dimitris Kapetanakis is worthy of a special mention as he is excellent in the role of the small-time enforcer, Alkis Masatos. His interactions with Sotiris (Sotiris Tsafoulias) are hilarious and offer a brief comic relief to the overall bleak story. Veteran actor Spyros Papadopoulos plays once again the Police Commissioner and the stunning Vicky Papadopoulou returns as the nosy journalist Christina Stergiou.

Of course, as it happens with every show, there are some flaws regarding mainly the depiction of certain institutions like the prison which is closer to the Star Trek saga than the contemporary Greek reality. Nevertheless, this is a work of fiction and the audience should suspense the disbelief in order to be able to enjoy the viewing experience. The overall aesthetic result is ravishing and this is what matters first and foremost. The make-up team did a tremendous job, equal to that of the biggest productions in the U.S. and the rest of Europe. I am really proud as a Greek to review a television show that is binge-worthy and I truly hope that there will be more. Thank you Sotiris Tsafoulias!

Kongekabale (2004)

A diachronic political thriller from Denmark.

[7/10 · 27 December 2020]

Danish producers have delivered some of the most sublime European political thrillers in both television and cinema as they insist on portraying the callous world of modern politics in a naturalistic, lifelike manner. King's Game is a 2004 production that preceded the immensely popular TV series Borgen and the legendary Forbrydelsen, a murder mystery that had a strong political dimension as it was set a few weeks before the mayoral elections in the city of Copenhagen. This is the directorial debut of Nikolaj Arcel who also co-authored the script along with Rasmus Heisterberg and Niels Krause-Kjær. The film features an all-star, Danish cast with Anders W. Berthelsen, Søren Pilmark, Nicolas Bro, Ulf Pilgaard, Lars Mikkelsen, and Lars Brygmann. All performances are top-notch and the cinematography is dark, transferring the audience to the cruel inner workings of the Danish political scene where chaos prevails after the tragic car accident of the leader of the Center Party. The character development is sterling, reminiscent of the best productions of the genre originating from the Nordic countries.

Ulrik Torp (A. Berthelsen) is a journalist, working in Dagbladet, one of Denmark's most well-known and esteemed newspapers. After the accident of the Center Party's leader, Aksel Bruun, Ulrik becomes the newspaper's correspondent to Christiansborg, the Danish Parliament and feels as he is given the opportunity of a lifetime. From the beginning, Ulrik is thrown into deep water as a brutal struggle is taking place inside the Center Party between the two prospective successors of Aksel Bruun in the party's leadership. Erik Dreier (S. Pilmark) and Lone Kjeldsen (N. Arcel) are both determined to be the country's new Prime Minister and the struggle between them is so severe that things will quickly escalate and get out of hand, especially after an alleged scandal breaks out, involving Lone's husband who is accused of embezzlement.

Ulrik will soon understand that he is nothing more than a pawn in a ruthless game and that he is being used by obscure, power-hungry political figures. His father (U. Pilgaard), an ex-politician who is connected to the major players of the game, will try to help him but to no avail. Ulrik will make an invaluable ally as he will join forces with another Christiansborg's reporter, Henrik Moll (N. Bro). Together they will embark on a race against time in order to prove the misconduct of some of Denmark's most prominent politicians. There is a glimmer of hope in the finale as justice prevails and a kind of balance is restored in Denmark's power dynamics.

Arcel is a director who seems to understand the interweaving of the various structures within the nation's political scene and also ponders on the ethical questions that arise when the battle for power disregards basic human moral codes. The result is a memorable, diachronic piece of film-making that remains relevant today and reminds us of the sacrifices that have to be made in order for the truth to be known. Politics is most often a dirty business so we should always be vigilant and hold the people who govern us, and who are ultimately responsible for our fates as political beings, in check. If you enjoy the European interpretation of the political thriller genre, you will definitely enjoy King's Game and fans of Nordic drama will add another great film to their collection.

Perry Mason (2020–2023)

The origin story of a beloved character from the 1950s.

[8/10 · 14 December 2020]

Los Angeles, 1932: an infant, Charlie Dodson, is snatched from his parents' house and a hefty ransom of 100.000 dollars is demanded from the kidnappers in order to return the baby. Unfortunately, things go dreadfully wrong and Charlie turns up dead, suffocated and with his eyes stitched open. The boy's father is considered a suspect by the authorities and he is soon arrested for the crime, but it is quickly proven that he is actually innocent. Next in line is Charlie's mother, Emily Dodson, who is also arrested after the police find out about her extramarital affair with one of the alleged abductors, John Gannon. Emily is a rather vulnerable individual who is plagued by guilt as she believes that her affair contributed to her son's untimely demise. Famous lawyer E. B. Jonathan takes on Emily's case and he is certain of his client's innocence, but he needs concrete evidence to be able to defend her in court.

Enter Perry Mason, a private investigator who undertakes small-time cases like surveilling celebrities and taking dirty pictures of them while at the same time extorting his clients for some more cash. He is tormented by his traumatic past as a soldier in France and he has a family that wants nothing to do with him anymore. His disheveled appearance deems him a rather untrustworthy fellow, nevertheless, he is hired by E. B. Jonathan, who is also Mason's mentor, to find the truth behind Charlie's abduction and murder. Perry, along with his sidekick Pete Strickland, will embark on an adventure that will require strong resolve as the investigative duo will be opposed to an omnipotent power structure that involves corrupt cops, ambitious prosecutors and prospective mayors who don't give a hoot about justice, reluctant witnesses, and a mountain of setbacks including E. B. Jonathan's suicide in the middle of their investigation.

Perry Mason is a popular character coming from the 1950s, a creation of the detective fiction author, Erle Stanley Gardner who wrote 82 novels and 4 short stories featuring the nominal criminal defense lawyer. The character was adapted for both motion pictures and television series, the most successful being CBS's show, Perry Mason, running for nine years (1957-1966) with Raymond Burr in the role of the titular advocate. The second, in chronological order, adaptation ran from 1973 to 1974 under the title The New Perry Mason, starring Monte Markham. Furthermore, during the years 1985 to 1995 more than 30 television films featuring Perry Mason ran and Burr played the role in 26 of them prior to his death in 1993.

HBO's version of Perry Mason is quite different from the previous ones and the number one reason is that the show narrates the beginning of Mason's career as a barrister and his previous occupation as a private eye, a period that remained unexplored before this adaptation. Many reviewers found it really hard to recognize the character that they loved through Raymond Burr's polished performance and in a way they are right, though if they were patient enough to follow through the season's eight episodes they would see that from the fifth episode onward, Perry becomes a lawyer and he is the one that finally defends Emily Dodson in this high-profile trial. There is a lot of negative criticism about this production around the internet but it chiefly emanates from those viewers who are familiar with the previous adaptations of Erle Stanley Gardner's work.

Perry Mason is an excellent neo-noir with a story that is plausible, fabulous performances by all members of the stellar cast, and captivating cinematography that transfers the viewer a century backward in the city of angels. In many aspects, the show's dark, gritty vibes and gory visuals are reminiscent of James Ellroy's work, the American giant of crime fiction who used Los Angeles as the setting for most of his novels. Emmy-awarded Matthey Rhys does a terrific job as Perry while the supporting cast features well-known thespians such as John Lithgow, Tatiana Maslany, Robert Patrick, Shea Whigham, and Lili Taylor.

Half murder mystery, half courtroom drama, Perry Mason is a brilliant production that will satisfy even the most demanding of audiences with its elaborate plot, compelling characterization, and accurate depiction of a long-gone era. Keep in mind, that Perry is not the only Gardner's character that is enlivened in this show as there is also Della Street (Juliet Rylance), Paul Drake (Chris Chalk), and Detective Holcombe (Eric Lange) who also feature in the story. This is a show that will appeal to film-noir lovers and those who enjoy films such as Chinatown, L.A. Confidential, Black Dahlia and Mulholland Falls. In my opinion, this is one of the best shows produced in 2020 and I hope that a second season will follow with Perry engaging in an equally absorbing criminal case.

Quiz (2020)

Cheaters or not?

[7/10 · 11 December 2020]

This is a three-part mini-series that aspires to portray accurately a major scandal that took place in England in 2001 and revolves around the alleged cheating of a player in the popular television quiz show "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire". The show was a massive success in the United Kingdom and its format was adopted subsequently by several countries in Europe and the United States which aired the show under the same title. In September 2001, an army Major, Charles Ingram, won the grand prize of 1.000.000 pounds answering correctly in fifteen multiple-choice questions of increasing severity, but the producers of the show immediately suspected that something was wrong regarding his outstanding performance. In the footage of Ingram's game, they detected some suspicious coughing coming from the audience that supposedly indicated the wrong answers to the player sitting in the hot chair. The members of the audience in question were Ingram's wife, Diana, and a timid man sitting in the fastest-finger chairs, Tecwen Whittock.

The case went on trial and Charles, Diana, and Tecwen were ultimately found guilty by the jury and given a suspended sentence, thus avoiding imprisonment for their crime. There is a controversy over whether the trio actually cheated or not and the producers of Quiz are careful not to endorse one view or the other. The creators of the series declared that they wished to make a balanced production where the viewers get to form their own opinion after presented with the cold facts and the arguments from either side. I read many hateful reviews, most of them written by people who are convinced of the Ingrams' guilt and seem to believe that this show is nothing more than an attempt to exonerate the protagonists who are presented in a rather favorable light. While I don't necessarily agree with them, I have to admit that at the end of the third and final episode, I was left with the impression that the couple, as well as Tecwen, could be innocent and they should be given at least the benefit of the doubt.

Quiz is directed by the veteran English auteur, Stephen Frears, who is widely known for his films Dangerous Liaisons, Dirty Pretty Things, and The Queen. The series features a carefully selected cast with Mark Bonnar (Shetland, Line of Duty), Michael Sheen (Frost/Nixon, Midnight in Paris), Sian Clifford (Liar, Fleabag), and Matthew Macfadyen (Pride & Prejudice, The Three Musketeers). Sheen gives an impressive performance as the show's host, Chris Tarrant. He has studied his role so meticulously that he has absorbed all the peculiar mannerisms of the real Chris Tarrant and morphs magnificently into his character. Macfayden and Clifford are both captivating as the Ingram couple who face an unprecedented challenge when their extraordinary story is put into the public spotlight. Mark Bonnar is exceptional, as always, in the role of Paul Smith, the creator and producer of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire", who is determined to put away the Ingrams for ruining his life's work.

This is an enjoyable show and its short length, three episodes of forty-five minutes each, makes for a quick watch. I watched it in just one sitting and I was quickly drawn to its bizarre storyline which becomes even weirder when one considers that this is a true story. I am not British, so I had no prior knowledge of the incident and that helped as I had not had an already formed point of view on the subject. Quiz has high production values, stark performances, and a unique true-life scenario that is worthy of the viewers' attention. The courtroom scenes in the final episode are great, though they are emphasizing on the defense's arguments rather than the prosecution's. Its only flaw is that some sub-plots are not explored in-depth, like that of the quizzing fraternity, and finally, they seem to be unrelated to the main storyline. Nevertheless, it remains a riveting show that guarantees entertainment and leaves the audience to decide what is true or not concerning this incredible true story.

The Translators (2019)

A literary whodunit by Régis Roinsard.

[7/10 · 8 December 2020]

Welcome to the cruel world of the high-stakes international publishing business that suffocates true artistic creation for the sole purpose of profit. The Translators (original title: Les Traducteurs) is a 2019 French/Belgian production featuring a multinational cast and a slick screenplay that blends many different genres. The film is partly a typical closed-room mystery, a classic whodunit, a heist thriller, and a social commentary on the commercialization of literature in our age. The director, Régis Roinsard, who also co-authors the movie's script along with Romain Compingt and Daniel Presley, keeps the audience guessing from start to finish and has many surprises in store as the plot is filled with red herrings, twists, and third-act reversals that keep us on our toes throughout the film's runtime. The story focuses on the underappreciated job of translating literature, an endeavor often considered to be tedious and humdrum as, according to the majority of people, it doesn't require any special skill or merit. The film is dedicated to the translators around the world who work quietly and contribute to the propagation of artistic work to the masses. After the ending credits roll, the audience realizes that they have learned a bit more about this unthankful, yet vital, line of work.

The plot revolves around the forthcoming publication of the third installment of an extremely popular literary trilogy, written by Oscar Brach, a mysterious author who wishes to remain anonymous, his identity hidden from the public. Eric Angstrom, the publisher of the three novels, assembles a group of nine talented linguists from nine different countries of the world who will have to translate the 480 pages of the third volume in a month, working in total isolation from the external world. They work in a bunker beneath a French chateau and Russian armed guards are keeping an eye on them in order to prevent a possible leak of the manuscript to the public. When Angstrom receives an SMS to his mobile phone that informs him of the fact that the first 10 pages have already leaked to the internet, he will force the group into a lockdown in order to find out the guilty party.

Soon, more pages will get leaked and the unknown extortionist will ask for a substantial ransom in order not to give away the whole book. Angstrom becomes incensed and determined to solve the situation, regardless of the means he has to use and the possible consequences. The members of the group, on the other hand, become suspicious of one another and they begin to denounce possible culprits among them. The outcome is going to be tragic as some of the participants in this odd experiment will lose their lives.

The international cast gives solid performances with many celebrated thespians from all over the globe such as the Spanish Eduardo Noriega (Thesis, The Method), the stunning Russian Olga Kurylenko (Quantum of Solace, Oblivion), the Danish Sidse Babett Knudsen (Borgen, Westworld), the Greek Manolis Mavromatakis (The Enemy Within, Uranya), the German Anna Maria Sturm (Polizeiruf 110, Good Times), and the Italian Riccardo Scamarcio (Romanzo Criminale, Three Steps Over Heaven). The film's lingua franca is French, though there are sometimes that the characters speak in their native tongue to express their overwhelming emotions about their bizarre predicament. Lambert Wilson (The Matrix Reloaded, Catwoman) is exceptional in his portrayal of the greedy, sadistic head of the publishing house, Eric Angstrom.

The Translators is a movie that endorses an unconventional, yet not entirely original, narrative structure which includes the heavy use of flashbacks and flashforwards while there is a great heist scene interjected in the middle of the film's runtime. The last part of the movie is full of twists and surprises that are plausible and make sense, leaving no unanswered questions and room for alternative interpretations of the story. To sum up, this is a recommendable picture that will definitely be appreciated by crime fiction fans and all those who enjoy the cozy mysteries of the Golden Age era of the genre.

The Girl on the Train (2016)

Women in trouble.

[6/10 · 7 December 2020]

This is a silver screen adaptation of the titular bestselling mystery novel by Paula Hawkins, who has also authored more similar titles such as Into the Water and the forthcoming A Slow Fire Burning which is expected to be published on August 31st, 2021 by Doubleday. Though the film stays loyal to both the basic plot premise and narrative structure of the novel, some minor differences separate them. First of all, the book's setting is London while the movie takes place in New York, the protagonist, Rachel Watson, is much more damaged in the book than in the film, some characters have a much more significant role in Paula Hawkins's fictional universe than in Tate Taylor's adaptation and some other discrepancies that set the movie apart from the novel. Nevertheless, Erin Cressida Wilson (Chloe, Secretary) who wrote the screenplay succeeds in retaining the original source's mood and atmosphere, stressing the importance of the main characters' often irrational, erratic behavior that moves the story forward and keeps the audience engaged throughout the movie's runtime. The Girl on the Train features a strong cast with Emily Blunt (The Devil Wears Prada, Edge of Tomorrow), Rebecca Ferguson (Snowman, Doctor Sleep), Haley Bennett (The Magnificent Seven, Music and Lyrics), and Justin Theroux (Mulholland Drive, American Psycho). Blunt gives an outstanding performance as Rachel, a troubled woman who has a severe drinking problem and spends her time stalking her ex-husband, Tom (J. Theroux), and his new wife, Anna (R. Ferguson). Haley Bennett's striking presence shines in her portrayal of Megan, an equally tormented female soul, whose disappearance constitutes the movie's great mystery.

Rachel is a young woman whose life turned upside down when her husband, Tom, abandoned her and chose to live with his lover, Anna, who soon gets pregnant. After losing her job, due to her alcoholism, Rachel has nothing else to do but to commute every day to New York by train. Each day, she passes by her old house where Tom lives now along with Anna and their baby girl, Eve. Trying to fight the jealousy and pain that plagues her, she gets obsessed with another young couple living a few houses down: Megan and Scot Hipwell (Luke Evans). Rachel creates an idyllic picture of the couple, imagining only the best for both of them and their life together. When, one day, Rachel witnesses a suspicious kiss between Megan and an unknown man on the porch of her house, she becomes livid with rage as the picture of the perfect family gets cracked once and for all. The sight of Megan's betrayal will lead Rachel to a drinking binge that will render her unconscious at the end of the day. The day after, the police arrive at her house in order to ask her about Megan, who has disappeared without a trace. Rachel is certain that she has seen something the night before, but she can't remember a single thing as she suffered a complete blackout. She will have to put the fragments of her memory in order, to make sense of what had happened. The only thing she doesn't know is that the truth about what happened to Megan will affect her personally in ways that she can't even fathom.

We watch the story unravel in an unconventional, non-linear format, through the eyes of the three female protagonists: Rachel, Megan, and Anna. The narration jumps back and forth in time, with many flashbacks and flashforwards that create a rather jumbled feeling to the audience, especially during the first half of the film. The narrative structure is adopted from the book but makes much less sense on the screen than on the page. The story is multi-layered and each narrative segment, corresponding to one of the three main characters is supposed to peel back an additional layer to the story. Nevertheless, the individual stories are not balanced and this uneven feeling is all the more evident as Rachel's perspective is undoubtedly dominant while Anna's is almost non-existent. In the last 30 minutes, the story becomes clearer and the final twist is nice, though a bit conventional, particularly for the fans of the genre.

Overall, I would say that The Girl on the Train is an enjoyable mystery/thriller that has its flaws, nevertheless, wins the audiences' hearts mainly due to the great performances and dark cinematography that is reminiscent of David Lynch's work. It's a fit choice for the genre's aficionados who wish to spend a couple of entertaining hours in front of the screen and those who haven't read Paula Hawkins's novel will be surprised by the film's unorthodox narrative pattern. If you enjoyed David Fincher's Gone Girl, another splendid cinema adaptation of Gillian Flynn's titular novel that used similar narrative tropes, then you should give The Girl on the Train a chance, always keeping in mind that the two movies are not of equal stature.

Witch Hunt (2020)

The burden of being a whistleblower.

[7/10 · 2 December 2020]

Witch Hunt (original title: Heksejakt) is a 2020 Norwegian financial thriller that focuses on the interweaving of the economical and political power, inside the broader contemporary European socio-political context, that crashes any individual attempt of finding any kind of justice. In a way, the plot of the show is reminiscent of another similar Nordic TV production, the Danish series Follow the Money (original title: Bedrag), which dealt with money-laundering and fraud in a massive scale, conducted by a gigantic energy company in Copenhagen. In Witch Hunt, the audience witnesses the efforts of several individuals to stand up against a corrupt system that involves businessmen, lawyers, politicians, and journalists who are worried that their dirty laundry is about to exposed by the protagonists. The series features a fine cast and a well-crafted storyline that keeps the viewer engaged throughout the eight episodes of the first season and the nicely-outlined main characters are easy to identify with. It is a nice change from the usual gloomy and gory Nordic noir productions and I hope that we will have the chance to watch more similar productions originating from the Scandinavian countries in the near future.

The show adopts a David versus Goliath angle that puts the protagonist, Ida (Ingrid Bolsø Berdal), a chief accountant in a high-end Oslo law firm, against her own employers when she detects a money-laundering scheme on behalf of the company's biggest client, the tycoon Peer Eggen (Mads Ousdal). Ida will immediately voice her concerns to her superiors, only to be persecuted by them with fabricated accusations of harassment. Ida will be left with no other choice but to turn to the Economic Crime Authority (Økokrim) and the honest, though a bit emotionally unstable, investigator Eirik Bråten (Fridtjov Såheim) who is dead set on bringing down Eggen and whoever associates with him in his shady dealings. As the investigation progresses, Eirik with the help of a young immigrant journalist, Aida (Sara Khorami), will realize that the case is more complex than he initially thought as the Norwegian Minister of Justice, along with her husband, seems to be involved. What follows is an uneven battle between the mighty Peer Eggen and Eirik who urges Ida to come forward and become a witness in order to build his case.

Witch Hunt's primary target is to portray the personal cost that the main characters have to pay in their quest for justice and redemption. The case causes a massive strain on Ida, Eirik, Aida, and their beloved ones as they one by one become prey of a faceless and ruthless network of immense power and reach. Nevertheless, there is a glimmer of hope in the season's finale that leaves the viewer feeling satisfied and optimistic about the future. Ingrid Bolsø Berdal is excellent as Ida and the same is true about Fridtjov Såheim's performance in the demanding role of the temperamental fraud investigator, Eirik. There are more well-known Norwegian actors in the cast such as Axel Boyum (Eyewitness, Home Ground), Gard B. Eidsvold (Hamsun, In Order of Disappearance), Bjørn Skagestad (Wisting, Grenseland), and Preben Hodneland (As I Fall, Amundsen). Overall, this is a recommendable show to the fans of the genre and all those who are keen on television productions that delve into the murky world of finance in the modern age. Give it a try and you won't regret it.

Before We Die (2017–2019)

Infiltrating organized crime in Stockholm.

[9/10 · 30 November 2020]

This is a review that covers the first two seasons of the much-lauded Swedish television series, Before We Die (original title: Innan vi dör), an ambitious production that set a high standard with an excellent first season, but failed to meet the high demands of the audiences in the second one. The show casts some very popular Swedish thespians such as Adam Pålsson (Bron/Broen-Season 3, Young Wallander), Magnus Krepper (Inspector Winter, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo), and Alexej Manvelov (Chernobyl, Top Dog) while the screenplay is written by Niklas Rockstrom (Wallander, Alex, Caliphate). The first season revolves around the infiltration of a criminal family by a young ex-con, Christian, aided by his mother, Hanna, and her colleagues in the organized crime unit of Stockholm's police. In the second season, we watch a traumatized Christian returning to Sweden after a brief stay in Costa Rica to penetrate once again a group of corrupt cops who are involved in drug trafficking and grand theft. I found the plotline of the second season to be repetitive and formulaic, lacking the spark that made the first cycle so compelling and engaging for the viewers. Furthermore, in the first season, the audiences had the opportunity to witness one of the most stunning plot twists ever seen in the Nordic noir television series, one that left them speechless because it reversed the perspective through which they were watching the story.

The first season begins with Christian (A. Pålsson), entering a nightclub in Stockholm intending to sell illegal substances. His mother, Hanna (M. Richardson), arrests him on the spot and sends him to prison for a brief stretch. Then the show cuts to the present day where Christian is released and meets an old friend and a high-ranking police officer, Sven, who also happens to be Hanna's secret boyfriend. Christian tells Sven about a robust Croatian criminal family, the Mimicas, who aspire to expand their influence by becoming the prime drug kingpins in Scandinavia. He asks Sven's help to infiltrate the family, using Stefan, a member of the Mimica's clan whom he met during his stay in prison, as a trojan horse. Sven is reluctant initially, but he finally agrees to be Christian's handler. He gives Christian an alias, Inez, by which the infiltrator will give him the information he needs in order to bring the Mimicas down. When Sven gets abducted and murdered by some unknown assailants, Hanna and her colleague Bjorn (M. Krepper) will have to take over as Inez's handlers as they suspect that the Mimicas are responsible for their friend's killing.

The first seasons' plotline is complicated, dense, and multifaceted as there are a lot of players involved. The Mimicas family, two criminal motorcycle clubs, The Mobsters and The Delinquents, a leak inside the organized crime unit who sells information to the head of the Mimicas gang, Davor (A. Manvelov), and many other characters that comprise the fascinating fictional universe of the series. The story is narrated in ten, one-hour-long episodes. There is a lot of suspense, as, on many occasions, Christian's true identity is threatened to be exposed, signing his death warrant. Furthermore, Hanna and Bjorn will have to work as a team, without the rest of the organized crime unit knowing anything about their case, as they immediately suspect the existence of a leak, something that would put Christian's life in danger. There are a lot of surprises and turns in the story while the final plot twist blows the viewer away with its ingenuity and consequences for the protagonists.

The second season begins with Christian being away in Latin America, trying to get over the devastating events of the previous season's finale. Hanna is determined to find the leak and as she investigates the matter, she stumbles upon a ghost criminal group of rogue cops who steal drug evidence from the crime scenes and sell it to gain profit. The group is called "The Circle" and Hanna soon convinces Bjorn to help her uncover the identities of The Circle's leaders and members. At the end of the first episode, Christian reappears and Hanna decides to once again put him in harm's way as she urges him to penetrate The Circle by gaining the trust of some already known members. Thus, Christian will embark on a new adventure that will perhaps atone him for the things he did while being away in Costa Rica.

The second season is definitely inferior to the first one. It is slower in its pacing, the storyline seems to be generic and lacking the edge that made the previous one such a success, and even the actors are not in top form either. The story unfolds in eight episodes of one hour each and is tedious at parts. The finale leaves the audience unsatisfied, though it hints at a forthcoming third season. The characters that we loved and identified with in the first season seem to be shadows of their former selves and an overall dejected feeling is prevalent in this cycle. I think that the following season should return to the original production model that made Before We Die one of the most exciting Scandinavian crime television shows. We can only hope and wait.

The Minister (2020– )

Politics and mental illness in Iceland.

[9/10 · 27 November 2020]

His show is the best Icelandic television export of the last few years and one of the most compelling political dramas ever filmed in the Nordic countries. Many reviewers saw The Minister as the Icelandic response to the popular Danish series, Borgen, but in reality, it is much more than that. Even though I enjoyed all three seasons of Borgen and I intend to watch the forthcoming fourth season when it will be broadcasted, I find the comparison to be unfair to this majestic production which features an engaging plotline, great photography, exceptional direction and a set of the most well-outlined characters ever portrayed in the genre. In the first four episodes, the audience observes the newly elected prime minister of Iceland's first steps in the government, his decisions and actions as well as their consequences to the lives of the simple people who may or may not have voted for him. In the second half though, the show changes its scope and we witness the descent of the most powerful man in the country into madness and paranoia and the grave implications for the nation and for those who are dearest to him. Keep in mind that there will be some spoilers in the lines that follow.

Ólafur Darri Ólafsson gives the performance of his life as prime minister Benedikt Rikardsson and he certainly deserves an Emmy Award for his depiction of a man battling with bipolar disease and mental illness, while at the same time struggling to make the necessary, and sometimes unpopular, revisions in the nation's political life. The show tackles many crucial political issues such as the separation of state and church, the problem of the immigrant's integration into Icelandic society, the sprawling development of the tourism industry that disrespects the country's natural wealth, and others. The viewer can form a rather accurate picture of the Icelandic socio-political reality today while at the same time admiring the picturesque landscape that renders Iceland one of the most popular tourist destinations.

The character of Benedikt, leader of the Icelandic Independent Party, is the main focus of the show's creators and the audience is introduced to his exuberant persona in the first episode, during a pre-election debate along with his opponents. Benedikt is a jovial, good-natured politician who has a bold vision for the future of Iceland and he succeeds in winning the majority in the elections through a series of innovative ideas that he implements regardless of his party's reactions to them. He loves music and he has a knack for playing the piano and singing. Furthermore, he is married to Steinnun (Anita Briem) who is a supportive wife and a fierce proponent of her husband's decisions.

After Benedikt's landslide victory in the recent elections, he will begin to behave impulsively and erratically, causing particular concern to his party's top brass and his own family. His father, who is a vicar living in the northern town of Akureyri informs Steinnun that Benedikt's mother was a manic-depressive artist who committed suicide by hanging during a severe depressive episode. Steinnun is reluctant to realize the true extent of Benedikt's illness but she will soon have to reconsider as her spouse's behavior escalates from mercurial to full-blown manic. The ramifications of his volatile attitude for the people who support and believe in him will be devastating, especially as paranoia seems to get the better of him and isolate him from the environment.

Of course, the show features a high level of political intrigue as the ministers of the government will quickly comprehend that something is really wrong with Benedikt. They will conspire and form unholy alliances in order to topple him as prime minister. There is Grimur (Thor Kristjansson), the Speaker of the national parliament of Iceland (Althing), who believes that he was treated unfairly by Benedikt, the Ministers of Interior and Finance who are baffled with their prime minister's bizarre, unilateral rulings and the members of the opposition who are keen on retrieving their lost power.

The Minister is the best Nordic series that I've watched for this year and it is highly recommended for those who enjoy character-oriented political dramas. Fans of Borgen will instantly love it, but you have to be warned: this is a show that takes a truly sad and depressing turn, especially in the second half. So, if you are not in the mood for dealing with extreme mental and emotional states of mind, you should better watch something else. I hope that the story will continue for a second season as there are many loose ends left in the first season's finale.

Bedrag (2016–2019)

Season 3 review.

[10/10 · 30 May 2020]

What a ride! The third and final season of the beloved show Follow the Money (original title: Bedrag) is certainly the best of the show and one of the best pieces of Nordic noir television ever. After the superb first and second season that dived into the murky waters of corporate greed and corruption, this one focuses on the hash smuggling business in Copenhagen. The characters that we met in the previous seasons are present but they are radically changed, almost transformed into something else. Alf has transferred from the fraud squad to the newly appointed Task Force Nørrebro which focuses on shutting down the hash trade and is after the city's major kingpins. Alf is a trainwreck after the events of the previous season. He has been shot twice in the stomach by the infamous "Swede" and he faced death in a brutal way. Today he is unable to sleep and he is functioning on a vicious mix of benzos and Ritalin. Nicky has been away in Spain for the last two years and he is back in Denmark but he has distanced himself from both his wife, Lina, and his little son, Milas. He is deep into the hash smuggling trade and he systematically launders the dirty money through a multitude of middlemen. Nicky sells to just everybody, the bikers, the immigrants' gangs in Nørrebro, and others. He is using a juice bar as a front business and he is working along with Lala, a young immigrant who has high ambitions. Nicky is working for a notorious Spanish hash kingpin, Marco, who is notorious for his toughness and resolve. Mads, played in the previous seasons by Thomas Bo Larsen, who was one of the main protagonists in seasons one and two has retired while we learn nothing about the fate of the young financial lawyer, Claudia (Natalie Madueño).

Apart from Nicky and Alf, the third main character in this final season is Anna (Maria Rich), a bank employee who is sick of getting overstepped in her work. In the second episode, e watch as one of Anna's younger, more inexperienced, and less competent colleague gets promoted as a branch manager. This is the last straw for Anna who decides to prove her abilities in another way. She is beginning to launder money through the bank she is working and soon she meets Nicky. A collaboration begins and soon Anna is getting mixed up in a game that will prove dangerous for her and her family. The character of Anna is more compelling than those of both Mads' and Claudia's and the third season is all about the protagonists' desperate attempts to survive in a hostile, lethal environment where nobody can be trusted.

If one wants to talk about character development then the third season of this great show is a shining example of how to do it right. Both Nicky and Alf are the shadows of their former selves and this is evident in both their physical appearance and behavior. Meek and down-to-earth Alf has lost much weight and he is prone to outbursts of anger directed mainly to his colleagues in the police station. His addiction adds to the character's instability and establishes an important plot trope which is explored throughout the season. Nicky has become obsessive about caution and it seems that his sole care in the world is not to get caught by the police. He has adopted a routine which is filled with extreme prudence and even involves the everyday set-up of "traps" in his own house in order to find out if anyone has been inside it while he is out.

A special mention ought to be made about Esben Smed's superb performance as Nicky. Smed is excellent in a quite different role than that of the previous two seasons. He is a broken man as his son, Milas, is now in foster care and his ex-wife is in a psychiatric facility due to clinical depression. In the first few episodes, Nicky denies having a kid and it seems that he has decided to abandon his former life as a husband and father. But, as we can see in Smed's struggling facial expressions, he is far from sure about his decision. He is longing to see his son again and when he does we watch as he seeks the redemption of all the misdeeds he's done in the past. Nicky's arc is one of the most fascinating ever as far as Scandinavian TV crime shows are concerned, and his character one of the most compelling I've ever seen in a show.

This season is completely different in mood and tone than the previous two. The colors are gloomy, with the prominent use of black and red in contrast with the lighter tone of seasons one and two. The storyline involves some really disturbing events that were absent before and the overall mood is borderline depressing. Nevertheless, the audience identifies with all the main characters and is rooting for them, besides their obvious flaws. The ending is the most appropriate for this bleakest of bleak season and its shattering effect stays with the audience for days after watching the final episode.

This season is a must-see, especially for those who prefer their crime TV shows to be realistic and dark. Keep in mind that this is a totally different cycle and you should forget everything you've concluded about the series during the first two seasons. I've never seen such a radical change in the overall feeling and atmosphere in a TV series so far. It was a real treat and definitely the best show I've watched in the last three years. Do yourselves a favor and watch this. Get braced for an unforgettable trip into the gloomiest corners of Copenhagen's underbelly.

The Great Beauty (2013)

Paolo Sorrentino's magic.

[9/10 · 26 May 2020]

When I first saw Paolo Sorrentino's The Consequences of Love, I thought that this was his best film and I didn't expect that there would be another one like it in terms of quality, storyline, photography, and performances. But I was wrong. The Great Beauty (original title: La Grande Bellezza) is Sorrentino's magnum opus, a spectacular visual elegy to the eternal city of Rome as well as a social commentary on the decadence of upper-class social life. The true protagonist of the movie is Rome, a city marked by its ambiguity and multiple semantics. In Sorrentino's fictional universe, Rome is a metropolis that gives birth and at the same time crushes human ambitions and dreams under the veil of endless pointless discussions and interactions between the film's characters. The Italian master auteur focuses on Rome's higher social circles and in the first scene of the movie we watch as a massive fiesta takes place on screen and where we see a vast crowd dancing and laughing enveloped in their cocoon of upper-class social status and celebrity culture. It is at this party that we meet the protagonist, Gep Gambardella, a once-upon-a-time novelist who has written one book forty years ago and nothing ever since. Gep attends many similar parties and he is consumed with this particular lifestyle as he is growing older. His life experience so far has made him a cynic and in some dialogues, he proves to be rather tough with people who attempt to insult or downgrade him (the best example is the excellent roof scene). Gep also likes to wander around Rome where he meets old friends, casual acquaintances or even movie stars like Fanny Ardant. When he hears about the premature death of his childhood amore, Gep will begin to reassess his life, contemplating his past, the missed chances, the mistakes, and the desire to write will resurface.

Toni Servillo has to be Sorrentino's favorite thespian as they have collaborated before in masterpieces like Il Divo and The Consequences of Love. Servillo delivers his most stellar performance ever in The Great Beauty and attributes such a cerebral mentality to his character that makes Gep one of the most memorable characters in the contemporary Italian cinema. There is something Fellini-like in both the film's cinematography and characterization even though in an interview he gave, Sorrentino, stated that he respects Fellini too much to say that it was an influence. Nevertheless, one could easily imagine Marcello Mastroianni in the role of Gep and overall mood and tone of the film are heavily reminiscent of Fellini's Dolce Vita. Of course, that doesn't mean that Servillo is not the most appropriate choice for the role of the protagonist as he is definitely on the top-5 of the best Italian actors of all time. Apart from Gep, there are many secondary characters in the film and all the actors give their best, elevating the film's overall grandiosity to sky-high levels.

The photography is magnificent, perhaps one of the best I've ever seen on the silver screen, and there are many imposing shots of Rome's elegant beauty. This elegance is pitted against the decadence and vulgarity of the city's aristocracy which is satirized in a brilliant comical manner by the director who is also the screenwriter. The comical aspect is partly present in The Great Beauty and it is counteracted by Gep's somber remarks on a number of themes, such as artistical inspiration, death, modern art , and, of course, the meaning of love. At the end of the film, when he is asked why he hasn't written anything for more than four decades, Gep admits: "All of my life I've been searching for the great beauty but I never found it". This overarching sense of futility permeates the film as a whole even though the final moments offer -perhaps- a fading glimmer of hope for Gep and for the audience as well. I believe that this is a film that the viewer has to see more than one time as there is a lot to process and grasp. I saw it two times and I think that I will do it again sometime in the near future as I was stunned by this film. Yes, it is true that Sorrentino has this effect on audiences and that is the reason why he is the best European director of our time. But be warned: this is a slow-moving film, a film that demands the viewer's full attention and it is not recommendable to those who ask for quick, cheap entertainment. Be ready to devote yourselves to the movie and you will be profoundly affected by this Italian gem.

There Will Be Blood (2007)

"I drink your milkshake".

[9/10 · 20 April 2020]

His is a film directed by the acclaimed auteur, Paul Thomas Anderson, and it is based on the titular novel by Upton Sinclair. There Will Be Blood is an exceptional character study, a commentary on the nature of human, and more specifically American, ambition, and a great piece of historical fiction. The film casts Daniel Day-Lewis in the role of Daniel Plainview, an oilman by his own admission and one of the first Americans who initiated the oil drilling industry that would later conquer the whole world. Day-Lewis creates a fascinating character who dominates the screen from the beginning until the end of the movie's runtime with his peculiar accent, quirky expression, and commanding persona. Daniel's antagonist in the movie is Eli, a Christian pastor who cuts a deal with Plainview to start the drilling in his family's land. The two characters will clash in the course of the movie and they will have an unforgettable showdown sequence in the end. Oil serves as a symbol of blood in the movie's universe, hence the title.

Daniel cannot trust other people and he has trouble connecting with them. He says: "There are times when I look at people and see nothing worth liking". He also admits that he hates seeing other people succeeding in their business. Daniel Plainview is pure American ambition plain and simple. He knows how to manipulate others and take advantage of them. When an unknown individual claiming to be his lost brother appears, Daniel's inherent mistrust becomes all the more evident. Paul Thomas Anderson focuses on the relationship between Daniel and his adopted son H. W. Plainview. In the beginning, the director implies that Daniel uses H. W. to easier convince other people to buy their land. It is always better to appear as a family man who cares for his 10-year-old son and wants only the best for him. It is all about appearances and the initials H. W. perhaps stand for "Human Worker". Nevertheless, as the story unfolds we watch Daniel expressing something that resembles true emotion for his adopted son and the audience begins to question the true nature of their relationship. When an accident occurs in the drilling site and H. W. loses his hearing, Daniel's true feelings come forward.

The tension between Daniel and Eli is palpable from their first meeting and escalates as the plot unravels. Eli is the son of Abel, the landowner, and twin brother of the young man who initially notified Daniel about the existence of oil in their family land. Eli is not an especially likable character as he seems to be equally cunning and manipulative as Daniel is. In his sermons, he claims to be the personification of the Spirit and a healer of any kind of physical or psychological pain. Daniel instantly feels aversion to Eli as he has no faith in God as well as anything or anyone above himself. In the monumental ending scene, he will force Eli to recite those words: "I am a false prophet and God is nothing but a superstition".

The battle for power between those two great characters is the main plot device that advances the story. It is essentially a battle for America's soul: God vs. Money. Nevertheless, the main character is Daniel and there is hardly a single shot in the film where he is not present. The editing of There Will Be Blood is truly exceptional with relatively lengthy shots and close-ups to the protagonists' faces where the audience can read the strife for power in their eyes and facial expressions. Except for Daniel Day-Lewis, all the members of the cast deliver memorable performances such as Paul Dano's who plays both Paul and Eli Sunday. This is a film that many will find boring as the story picks up speed after the 3/4ds of the movie's runtime. The audience should be patient and observe every single detail on the screen to be able to assess this movie as a whole. The film offers some valuable insights into human nature, family relationships, and the nature of wealth as well as its effect on the people.

Quick (2019)

Sweden's biggest legal scandal on screen.

[7/10 · 3 April 2020]

This is a film about Sweden's greatest judicial scandal ever. Sture Bergwall, under the pseudonym Thomas Quick, has confessed more than 30 murders, while incarcerated in a mental institution, committed between 1964 and 1993. He was convicted for eight of those murders between 1994 and 2001. In 2008 he withdrew all his confessions and the cases for which he was condemned fell apart as they have been based almost exclusively in the confessions, lacking any concrete, hard evidence to support them. There were no eyewitnesses or forensic evidence collected by the authorities that proved Bergwall's guilt beyond the shadow of any doubt. Bergwall was confined to care in an institution for the criminally insane after committing an armed robbery in 2001 and stabbing a man while being in outpatient treatment from a psychiatric facility. During his treatment, he confessed to more than thirty murders committed in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Finland between 1964 and 1993. Quick's therapy involved the heavy use of benzodiazepines, a class of psychoactive drugs used to sedate patients. Hannes Råstam, an investigative journalist of SVT (Sveriges Television), made extensive research on Bergwall's story and in 2008 during an interview that he took from him, Bergwall retracted his confessions and denied his involvement in any of the cases for which he had been sentenced. Råstam, along with his colleague Dan Joseffson, has published books and TV documentaries about the murder cases and both of them claimed that Bergwall was manipulated by lead psychologist Margit Norell into confessing crimes that he hadn't committed. Norell treated and studied Thomas Quick in the Forensic Psychiatric Clinic in Säter and was an expert witness in his trial. She was rumored to be a kind of cult leader or mentor even though those assumptions were never confirmed.

The film's protagonist is Hannes Råstam, played subtly and convincingly by the multi-talented Swedish actor and author, Jonas Karlsson (Death of a Pilgrim, The Snowman, Sthlm Requiem). Alba August (Rain, Below the Surface) does a solid job as Råstam's sidekick, Jenny, who helps him throughout the investigation. David Dencik (Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Top of the Lake, Chernobyl) is excellent as Thomas Quick and delivers one of his best performances ever on screen. The director of the film, Mikael Håfström (Evil, Room 1408), focuses on the two journalists' crusade as well as it often cuts to flashbacks from Bergwall's therapy during his time in Säter. We can take a glimpse into the mind of a highly disturbed individual as well as a sad, lonely man who is too confused to realize what he is saying. At the same time, we are witnessing Råstam's initial reluctance to follow the case, his apprehension during the first interviews with Quick and his insistence on uncovering the truth behind the story. He is quickly tracing major inconsistencies with the official police investigation's conclusions and gradually he begins to believe that perhaps something is amiss. The movie also peeks in Råstam's private life and his battle with serious medical diseases which are first diagnosed after a minor car crash accident he suffers during the beginning of the Quick investigation. The Swedish television journalist finally died in 2012 of pancreatic cancer.

This is a true-crime film narrating the depressing story of a non-criminal who was a victim himself. A victim of a deficient police investigation, over-ambitious clinical psychologists who knew no limits as far as mental disease treatment is concerned but above everything, a victim of his own disturbed mind. I was familiar with the Thomas Quick case but the truth is that I've never delved deeper into it and I mostly ignored the majority of the facts that made this sordid tale one of the biggest legal scandals in Scandinavia. Håfström criticizes severely the -more or less corrupt- institutions that contributed to the destruction of one man's soul like mental illness facilities and, of course, the Swedish police force. Nevertheless, the focus of the film remains on the people and the consequences that this case had on their lives. Thus, Quick is much more than a mere denouncement of the Swedish authorities as in its essence is a largely human-oriented movie about the different lives of several individuals, especially concentrating on Bergwall and Råstam.

It should be also added, for all those who want to learn more about Thomas Quick, that there is also the 2015 documentary by Brian Hill, The Confessions of Thomas Quick, that recounts Thomas Quick's bizarre story and includes interviews with him and other participants in the events. On the other hand, Quick is a fictional true-crime account of this grotesque tale of false confession and miscarriage of justice.

Shetland (2013– )

We need more!

[8/10 · 31 March 2020]

This is a show based on the novels by Ann Cleeves, the renowned English crime fiction author who is also the writer of another successful television series, Vera. While the DI Vera Stanhope series of books is set in Northumberland, Shetland features the breathtaking locale of the subarctic archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, stationed between Great Britain, the Faroe Islands, and Norway. The show is partly filmed in Shetland, though some of the scenes are set in other Scottish cities like Glasgow where the scenery and the buildings resemble those of the islands. The protagonist of the series Is DI Jimmy Perez (Douglas Henshall) and the small team of police officers that surround him in the small police precinct of Lerwick, the capital and only town of Shetland. The show has already aired five seasons and it is rumored that it will be back for a sixth season in 2020. It has been a massive commercial success and it is one of the most well-received TV shows from Scotland in the recent few years. The first season is consisted of only two episodes, narrating one story, while from the second season onward the series featured six episodes each. Every season is of equal quality as far as plot engagement, acting, and photography is concerned and the production values are of the highest standard. It should be added that Ann Cleeves has written eight installments in the Shetland Island series so far and the last one, titled Wild Fire, was published by Minotaur Books in 2018.

Jimmy Perez is the chief police investigator in Lerwick and has one teenage adopted daughter, Cassie (Erin Armstrong) whose biological father is Duncan (Mark Bonnar), a close friend of Jimmy's. His colleagues in the police station are the impulsive and ambitious Andy (Steven Robertson) and the good-natured, golden-hearted Alison -"Tosh"- McIntosh (Alison O'Donnell), Jimmy's sidekick and trusted friend. Together they will be called to investigate some truly complex murder cases that involve deep-buried secrets, strained family relationships, cold cases, unfulfilled romances and so on. The closed community of Shetland Islands provides an ideal setting for a mystery plot to unfold and the overall atmosphere is reminiscent of other British TV shows set in small towns like Broadchurch, Hinterland, and Happy Valley. Jimmy will have to dig deep into people's past and present dealings in order to uncover the truth and he proves to be a brilliant and highly effective investigator whose intuition and instincts are -almost- always dead on.

There are many aspects of Shetland that set it apart from the vast majority of similar crime TV shows. First of all, it is the great cinematography that fully takes advantage of the stunning, luminous landscape and makes a contrast with the darkness of the stories. Furthermore, the plotlines are magnificent without being labyrinthine and over-complicated and this is evident in the second season that is consisted of six episodes that narrate three distinct stories in a set of two episodes each. All three stories feel like watching an absorbing crime feature film of two hours where every single trope of the genre is present and handled in a manner that keeps the viewer glued to his seat. Of course, this fact is due to the original source that is Ann Cleeve's superb novels which offer a solid basis for the producers of the show. Each separate story is based on a book. Another thing that is worthy of mentioning is the level of the performances by the actors in both primary and supporting roles. Except for D. Henshall, M. Bonnar, and A. O'Donnell, all the actors that portray secondary characters are great and convincing in their performances, thus proving that Scotland is a homeland of many excellent thespians.

I was thinking about which season was the best one so far and I frankly couldn't choose one because the quality level of all seasons is even. Some of them are dealing with dark and disturbing themes like people trafficking, prostitution and wrongful convictions and they all begin as a puzzle that is slowly expanding until the final episode where everything is revealed and explained, leaving no question unanswered. We need more shows like Shetland and I honestly hope that it will continue for many more seasons in the future. If you haven't already checked it out, you ought to do yourselves a favor and give it a try. It is certain that you will end up binge-watching one season after another.

The Hypnotist (2012)

Nice.

[7/10 · 29 March 2020]

This is a cinema adaptation of the first book in the Joona Linna series written by Lars Kepler, a pseudonym for the married couple of Alexander and Alexandra Ahndoril. The Swedish duo has written seven installments until now and the novels have been a huge commercial success around the world. As I'm reading the latest book in the series, titled Lazarus, I decided to watch again the Hypnotist by Lasse Hallström, starring Tobias Zilliacus as Joona Linna and Mikael Persbrand in the role of the titular "Hypnotist", Erik Maria Bark. It should be noted that Hypnotist is the first book in the series and the only one that has been adapted to the cinema screen until now. It has been announced that the second installment, The Nightmare (original title: Paganinikontraktet), will be released soon, perhaps the following year.

The movie retains the basic premise of the book's story and begins with the brutal murder of a whole family that takes place in a quiet neighborhood in Stockholm. Joona Linna, a Finnish detective-inspector of Stockholm's Criminal Investigation Department, is the first officed on the scene and he finds the father, mother, and daughter slain in their home. The only survivor is the little son, Joseph, who is immediately transferred to the hospital as he is also severely injured. The boy is the only living witness of the slaughter, so Joona is desperate to talk with him in order to learn something about the culprit's identity. Unfortunately, though, Joseph seems to be unresponsive, so Joona calls Erik Maria Bark a doctor who is famous for treating acute trauma through hypnotism. Erik is initially reluctant to hypnotize Joseph but Joona's insistence forces him to act.

At the same time, we take a peek of Erik's family life in his house where he lives along with his wife, Simone (Lena Olin) and little son, Benjamin. Erik has a hard time sleeping and he takes some very strong sleeping tablets, something that makes Simone despises and adds tension to an already strained relationship. One night, an unknown perpetrator will invade the Bark household and abduct Benjamin after injecting Simone with a powerful sedative drug. Joona will quickly realize that there is a connection between the family murder and Benjamin's abduction and he will have to use his detecting skills to find out the identity and save little Benjamin's life as well as Erik and Simone's marriage.

There are some major differences between the novel and the film especially as far as the plot is concerned, nevertheless, that doesn't mean that the movie doesn't succeed in capturing the source's mood and atmosphere. The performances by the main protagonists are excellent and Tobias Zilliacus is a very fitting choice in the role of Joona as both his physique and expression match the descriptions of him in the books. Mikael Persbrandt is an actor who can play any role with the same offhandedness, while Lena Olin is more than convincing as the despaired, grieving mother who is ready to do anything to get her son back.

The Hypnotist may not be the thriller movie that you will never forget, nevertheless it is a highly entertaining, exciting ride from the beginning until the end. The fans of Lars Kepler will love it and the same is true for the fans of Scandinavian crime/thrillers. Lasse Hallström is one of the most experienced Swedish auteurs and it would be nice if he continued to direct other silver screen adaptations of the Ahndoril duo's work. In these times we live in, we need films that will make us forget what is happening around us and captivate our imagination. Give The Hypnotist a try and you will not regret it.

Bordertown (2016–2020)

Season 2 review.

[8/10 · 8 March 2020]

Finland is a country whose contribution in the notorious Nordic noir genre was minimal until five years when the first crime television series were produced and managed to leave their mark on the European television map. Bordertown (original title: Sorjonen) is the Finnish heavy artillery as far as crime TV shows are concerned as it is a show which scores high on every aspect and category. First and foremost it has excellent cinematography which binds the picturesque landscape with the somber dark colors that are prominent in the series' stories and plotlines. The characters are all three-dimensional and their interactions are plausible and credible. The dialogue is very well-written and constitutes -perhaps- the most distinctive aspect of the series. Moreover, the show's casting is top-notch with Ville Virtanen (Rebecka Martinsson, Norskov, The Truth Will Out) playing chief investigator Kari Sorjonen, a compelling character whose intuition is his north star and main instrument of investigation. Sorjonen has a brilliant, yet peculiar, intellect that make those that surround him feel awkward and inferior, something that doesn't make him particularly sociable. It should be noted that the show has won the Kultainen Venla award (Finnish Emmy) in the Best Drama Series category and in addition to this, Bordertown also picked up awards for Best Leading Actor (Ville Virtanen) and Best Leading Actress (Anu Sinisalo).

We saw in the show's first season, which premiered in Finland in October 2016 on Yle TV1, that Kari Sorjonen has moved from the capital of Helsinki to the small town of Lappeenranta, close to the Finnish border with Russia. There, he joins the local police force and meets his new colleagues in the Serious Crime Unit (SECRI) and very quickly stands out due to his instinctive approach to crime-solving that is effective and yields results. Kari's colleagues are Niko (Ilkka Villi) and the Russian-born, hard-boiled cop Lena (Anu Sinisalo). He also has a wife, Pauliina (Matleena Kuusniemi) and a teenage daughter, Janina (Olivia Ainali) and he struggles to tend closer to them, balancing his job obsession with his familial responsibilities. Kari's daughter, Janina, becomes a friend with Lena's adopted daughter, Katia, a rebellious teenage girl who very often gets in trouble. I should make a special mention to the actress that plays Katia, Lenita Susi, whose talent and celestial beauty are bound to enchant the audience. The relationship between strict Lena and the untamed Katia is an explosive one and is on the center of some of the show's most absorbing episodes. Family is on the center of the show's narrative and is blended as a theme with the crime, something that also binds Bordertown with the Nordic noir genre's main tropes and trademark characteristics. The show's setting, the neighboring with Russia is another element that the creators use to enrich their storylines. Nevertheless, the typical Scandinavian stereotype that dictates that the Russians are always the bad guys is reversed here. Fisher King producer Matti Halonen has stated: "The bad guys are not who you think they are, the main character is not your typical crime noir character. So, in the end, you have a typical crime series from Scandinavia but with elements that are truly original".

The second season of Bordertown consists of ten episodes in total, that are further divided into five sets of two episodes that narrate a different story. There are, of course, some plot elements that permeate all the season's episodes such as Kari's family troubles that include the brain tumor of his beloved wife and his problematic relationship with Janina who is one the verge of becoming a fully responsible adult. As always, some storylines are more fascinating than others and I think that episodes 3 and 4 (The Rite of Spring) and the final two, 9 and 10 (Without a Shadow) were the most interesting ones at least as far as the plot is concerned. Some stories have a strong whodunit element that makes them irresistible for the viewer while others are more focused on the overall mood and atmosphere. Either way, this is a show that you are bound to binge-watch, especially if you are particularly fond of the Scandinavian version and interpretation of the crime fiction genre. In a way, Bordertown reminded me of other legendary crime TV productions such as Bron/Broen. The color palettes of the two shows are very similar while they both feature -more or less- analogous themes.

The series' first two seasons have been aired in October 2016 and 2018 respectively, while the third season has already been shot and aired in the Finnish broadcaster Yle TV 1 and if Netflix follows the same release pattern as previous seasons, Bordertown will premiere on February 2020. The show's creator, Miikko Oikkonen, said: "The winter landscape and atmosphere of season three will bring the crimes and family drama to a new epic dimension." So, we will have to sit tight and wait for the release of one more season of our favorite Finnish crime show.

12 (2007)

So much more than a remake.

[8/10 · 2 March 2020]

Nikita Mikhalkov is the son of the famous Russian poet Sergey Mikhalkov and also one of the most engaging contemporary Russian auteurs. His films are known for their deep humane mood and feeling, always focusing on the personal aspect and the character(s) who are portrayed in the fine Russian tradition of the great literary authors like Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Anton Checkhov, Leo Tolstoy, etc. 12 is a remake of the popular American movie, 12 Angry Men (1957), directed by Sidney Lumet and starring Henry Fonda in the role of the protagonist, Juror no. 8. In Mikhalkov's movie, which was nominated for Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film (2008), it is Sergey Makovetsky who plays the incessant, solemn juror who dares to disagree with the initial unanimous guilty verdict decided by his peers. The story of the original is kept -almost- intact in this remake, but the dialogue, as well as the character development, stand on a higher level of quality. It is those differences that make 12 one of those rare cases where the remake is a better film than its predecessor which in turn is deservedly considered to be one of the classic American movies of the 1950s. So, in general terms, Mikhalkov's version is a cornerstone achievement for the Russian cinema, a film that is deemed as the director's best so far.

The story's setting is nearly identical to that of Lumet's picture. A young man, in his late teens or early twenties, is arrested for the brutal murder of his father by stabbing. Though, in this case, the kid is of Chechen descent and the father a Russian military officer who has adopted the kid a long time ago. This minority dimension in the plot fuels a few of the movie's dialogues as Russians are more than prejudiced against Chechens as they are responsible for several terrorist attacks in their country's domain. The theme of racism is further explored by Mikhalkov as some of the jurors are of Jewish background, something that creates further tension between the twelve jurors and gives the opportunity for antisemitic comments and remarks by some of them. The evidence against the young man is overwhelming and at first, the jurors seem to completely rule out the notion that the kid may be innocent. It is only Makovetsky's character who is bold enough to sow the seed of doubt in his eleven peers whose initial reactions are incredulity, almost bemusement, and mockery directed to juror no. 1. Nevertheless, as the plot unfolds, the remaining jurors contemplate the case for one more time and in the process, they find out more and more inconsistencies in the prosecution's story. Some of the plot elements are identical to that of 12 Angry Men or slightly altercated in order to fit the modern Russian reality.

If juror no.1 is the protagonist in 12, then his counterweight and antagonist is Sergey Garmash's character who is stubborn and refuses to even hear a different opinion on the matter of the final verdict. It should be mentioned that for Garmash a dream came true in 12 as it was the first time that he collaborated with Nikita Mikhalkov who respects profoundly. For his character, the Chechen youngster is an unrepentant killer and should be sentenced to the most severe punishment established by the legal system. The tense dialogue between Garmash and Makovetsky ought to be studied by other, American or not, directors who wish to build three-dimensional, plausible characters and at the same time add hidden layers to them which will be revealed in the course of the movie's running time. Mikhalkov interjects some great monologues given by each of the jurors and through them, the audience is able to get a glimpse into their unique lives, their memories, and the events that stigmatized them forever. There are many genuinely emotionally touching scenes in this film which is shot almost exclusively in one room, with the only exception of a few interjecting flashback scenes from the life of the accused and is based exclusively on its superb script. It is a must-see for everyone either you are familiar with the original version or not. If you enjoy character-oriented, dialogue-based crime films then you are in for a treat with this one.

Disappearance at Clifton Hill (2019)

A Canadian neo-noir saved by its great sense of location.

[5/10 · 29 February 2020]

This is an independent production, directed by a young auteur, Albert Shin (In Her Place) and set in the picturesque Niagara Falls in Canada. Disappearance at Clifton Hill is an ambitious project and the director uses many well-known tropes of the mystery/thriller genre such as the small-town mystery, the eccentric female protagonist, a twisty plot, etc. The final result is a decent film that can be categorized as a neo-noir, but nothing beyond that. The story is pretty formulaic and the development of the plot, though full of twists, is predictable at least to the eyes of the hardcore fans of the genre. The film's main asset is its great cinematography and the sublime use of the scenic Niagara Falls landscape that is the real and only protagonist of the movie. The cast is consisted of, more or less, non-commercial thespians who, nevertheless, do a good job in both protagonistic and supporting roles. Tuppence Middleton (The Imitation Game, Sense8) plays Abbie, a young woman who lives in Toronto and returns to her hometown in Niagara Falls when her mother dies. There she meets again her younger sister, Laure (Hannah Gross), and together they meet their family lawyer to learn about their mother's will. The family owned a shabby motel in the town that is now mortgaged and ready to be sold in a posh firm.

Abbie has a secret from her childhood that we watch in the first scene of the movie. As she was on the beach along with her parents and sister, her eye catches a young boy deeper in the woods who seems to be severely injured as his one eye is covered with bandages and blood is dripping from the wound. Immediately after that, a car stops in the driveway in front of the boy and a mysterious couple, a man and a woman, kidnap the boy whom they put in the trunk of their car. The horror that little Abbie has witnessed followed her throughout her life and now that she is back to the scene of the crime, she embarks on a perilous journey to find out what happened to the poor kid and who the culprits might be. Soon, she discovers that only four days after the incident with the boy, a suicide of an eight-year-old kid was reported. Abbie connects the two events and she will have to delve deeper into the little town's secrets that some wish to remain buried forever. Unfortunately, Abbie, due to past misdemeanors will struggle to convince Laure for her theories while the local police seem to be totally indifferent to her wild assumptions and speculations. Near the end of the film, we learn the reason why Laure is so reluctant to take for granted what Abbie is saying. She suffers from a severe condition that leads her to obnoxious, inexplicable behavior. I suppose that at that point, the director wants the audience too to doubt about Abbie's state of mind and suspect her as a possibly unreliable narrator.

The film's main flaw is its failure to create any kind of suspense and tension that will grip the audience. The tempo is flat and there is no proper build-up to the climax which also seems to be inadequate and unsatisfying. Nevertheless, I should note that the final scene which includes the big, final twist, is very well-shot and warms the hearts of the viewers with its optimistic character. I wouldn't say that Disappearance at Clifton Hill is an unmissable thriller or one that will stick to your memories for long after watching it, but if you enjoy films with amazing cinematography and you are willing to overlook some problems in the plot and the pacing, then you should give it a try. It is only the third directional feature film by Albert Shin who has a promising future if he is more careful to the stories he chooses to shoot and avoid some mistakes that originate from his inexperience.

Sons of Denmark (2019)

A dark, slow-burning film about racial tensions in today's Copenhagen.

[7/10 · 25 February 2020]

The problem of massive immigration from countries like Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, and Iran in Europe in the last decade has become one of the most prominent problems for the continent and has caused multiple frictions between the native populations and the Muslim immigrants. Furthermore, the rise in terrorist attacks made the people all the more suspicious towards the Muslim immigrants and new political parties preaching nationalism and xenophobia have gained immense power in the last few years throughout Europe. This film is the debut feature film by Ulaa Salim, who has only shot short films so far, and it focuses on the lives of two immigrants in Copenhagen, Zakaria (Mohammed Ismail Mohammed) and Malik (Zaki Youssef). Zakaria is a young man who watches the newly founded Danish nationalist party ready to govern the country and a far-right extremist group called "Sons of Denmark" spreading fear and panic by committing vicious attacks to random immigrants in the city. The European audience is certainly familiar with that kind of rhetoric and action from far-right politicians as they exist in almost every single country today. Malik is a bit older and also the right-hand of Hassan, a kind of mentor for all Muslim extremists and the mastermind behind many terrorist attacks in Denmark. The movie's first scene is a terrorist attack in the Nørrebro station, in central Copenhagen where a young Danish man sees his girlfriend die due to a bomb explosion. Then the film cuts to Zakaria and we watch the first half of the story unravel through his point of view. In the second half, Malik becomes the sole protagonist until the shattering climax in the final minutes of the film's runtime.

Salim attempts to delve into the personal universe of Zakaria who is easily radicalized by Hassan and focuses on the relationship between Zakaria and his family, his mother and little brother. Moreover, the director highlights the feelings of insecurity that torment Zakaria and the fear of what will happen to his family. Hassan is a cruel agitator who exploits the misfortune of his fellow countrymen in order to turn young children into brutal terrorists and executioners. Parallel with Zakaria's story, we are watching some short snippets by the TV news that establish the rapid growth of the Danish nationalist party and the expanding popularity of its leader, Martin Nordahl (Rasmus Bjerg). Nordahl's rhetoric is dangerously close to that of the Nazis in the Second World War, always stressing the need to deport all immigrants from Denmark, and he justifies his views on the Islamist terrorist activity which cost the lives of 24 people in the Nørrebro attack. As a result "Sons of Denmark" commit many atrocities against Muslims in the neighborhoods of Copenhagen and the level of violence is escalating as time passes. Hassan tells to Zakaria: "They call themselves Sons of Denmark. To me, they are the filth of Denmark". He succeeds in growing Zakaria into a fanatic, ready to do anything, even if that includes murder. Ali (Zaki Youssef) is Hassan's sidekick and he is the one that trains Zakaria for him to kill Nordahl in his own house. But, when Zakaria gets into Nordahl's house and attempts to kill him, he finds out that he has been set up by Ali who called the cops to arrest him. With Zakaria in prison, the director shifts his focus to Ali, whose real name is Malik, an undercover cop who infiltrated Hassan's group in order to collect information for the authorities and prevent possible terrorist acts. Malik, a Muslim himself, has his own family, a wife and a small kid, and he is struggling with feelings of shame emanating from his deceit and betrayal of his fellow countrymen. His boss in the police force, Jon (Olaf Johannessen), trusts him and respects him despite his frequent bursts of anger. Jon will keep Malik in the surveillance but this time he will be investigating the Sons of Denmark group which is ready to launch a series of attacks in the election night.

The racism theme has been explored in several Danish films like Bleeder, Pusher, R, Journal 64 and others, though not fully. That means that the above pictures included racism in their plot, but it was not their main motif. Sons of Denmark is a dark, violent movie that is shot masterfully with the prominent use of red and black colors which adds to the overall gloominess and sense of impending doom that the audience feels during the two hours of the film's runtime. The pacing is slow, though never becomes tiresome for the viewer who absorbs the gritty mood that the movie exudes and identified with both the protagonists, especially with Malik who is a great character. Zaki Youssef is a rising star in Danish cinema and it should be noted that he will portray Assad in the new "Department Q" movie series also starring Ulrich Thomsen. Mohammed Ismail Mohammed leaves his mark in his first feature film and I sincerely hope that we will see more of him in the near future. I read some reviews that denounce Sons of Denmark as a preaching propaganda film trying to make a political point. I disagree with that notion and I believe that the director wanted to emphasize on the characters as individual persons, to portray their everyday life and its struggles in a hostile environment. I didn't feel that the target was to manipulate the audience in order to establish an ideologically charged political perspective. It is a film about people and it is addressed to everyone regardless of their nationality or political views. That's a very promising debut by Ulaa Salim who is now added to the ever-expanding map of notable Scandinavian auteurs, and a film that I recommend to everyone who enjoys quality political thrillers. Keep in mind that this is a violent film and some scenes are downright disturbing.

Rebecka Martinsson (2017– )

Ida Engvoll steals the thunder in the role of Rebecka.

[5/10 · 24 February 2020]

Åsa Larsson is one of the least popular Swedish crime authors, nevertheless, her body of work constitutes a noteworthy addition to the Nordic noir genre. Her series featuring Rebecka Martinsson, an idiosyncratic young lawyer from Stockholm, has won critical acclaim and the total number of novels in the series so far is five. The first season of Rebecka Martinsson consists of eight episodes that are divided into pairs of two for each novel written by Larsson. Thus we have: The Blood Spilt (episodes 1 and 2), The Black Path (episodes 3 and 4), Until Thy Wrath Be Past (episodes 5 and 6), and The Second Deadly Sin (episodes 7 and 8). The producers chose not to include an adaptation of the first installment in the series, Solstorm. Perhaps this is due to the prior shooting of the titular movie in 2007 by Leif Lindblom, with Izabella Scorupco as Rebecka Martinsson and Mikael Persbrandt. Lindblom's movie was a mediocre adaptation of a mediocre book, as in Solstorm, Larsson's narrative style and plot coherence haven't yet been developed in the high standards that they did in the later novels and the plot apart from being implausible, had several holes. In the movie, Scorupco gives a convincing performance as the protagonist even though the rest of the cast seems to be out of their depth.

In this series, Ida Engvoll, the Swedish actress that the audiences have seen in plenty of movies and television series like Arne Dahl: Europa Blues, Beck, A Man Called Ove, proves to be the perfect fit for the role of the brilliant, though emotionally and mentally unstable, young female prosecutor. The setting is the little village of Kuravaara, near the town of Kiruna on the northernmost part of Sweden where the temperature is freezing and the landscape is known for its wild, almost inaccessible, beauty. It should be mentioned thatÅsa Larsson, even though born in Uppsala, was raised in Kiruna, so she possesses a deep knowledge of the landscape that is reflected in her prose, especially in the excellent descriptive parts. Rebecka, who lives in Stockholm with her fiance and works in a big law firm, returns to her hometown to attend the funeral of a person who was important to her, Mildred, a kind of substitute mother for her. She is first believed to be a victim of a terrible accident, though Rebecka soon finds out many holes in the original investigation and suspects foul play. Anna Maria Mella (Eva Melander) is the chief police investigator in Kiruna and an old friend of Rebecka's and she attempts to launch a homicide investigation for Mildred's death. This is a brief synopsis of the first two episodes of the show and I will not write anything more as it would spoil all the fun.

What makes Rebecka Martinsson stand out from other Scandinavian crime shows is the intense, powerful performance by I. Engvoll who is very similar to Rebecka's image that I created when I was reading the books. Engvoll is an actress with a wide range of skills and her acting in the episodes where she plays Rebecka having a total nervous and mental breakdown is top-notch. I cannot remember a female performance of similar fortitude in similar Swedish TV shows, perhaps with the only exception of Miranda Richardson's in Before We Die (original title: Innan vi dör). Furthermore, the producers were careful not to alter the plotlines of the books, retaining the main story and plot points. As a result, the show numbers among the best Swedish crime television series of the last five years along with Before We Die, Spring Tide, The Lawyer, etc. If you enjoy a proper Nordic crime/mystery series, then Rebecka Martinsson should be one of your top choices.

The Hidden Child (2013)

A decent adaptation of the best novel written by Camilla Lackberg.

[6/10 · 24 February 2020]

Camilla Läckberg is one of the most well-known Swedish crime fiction authors and her novels set in her birth town, Fjällbacka, having as protagonists the married duo of Erica Falk and Patrik Hedström have been translated into at least 40 languages in 60 countries. Erica Falk, the main protagonist of the Fjällbacka crime series, is an alter-ego of Läckberg, as she is too a writer of true crime books. Her husband, Patrik is the second protagonist in the books, a Police Criminal Investigator in the small town of Fjällbacka that seems, despite its minimal size, to be the setting of several cruel and resentful homicides. Together, Erika and Patrik will solve some of the most challenging cases that always seem to have their roots in a traumatic past and broken relationships. Läckberg usually uses a double timeline narrative, narrating her stories in the present through Erika and Patrik's point of view, while there are always interjecting chapters that chronicle a story buried in the past. As it is often in Nordic noir novels the present and past timeline begin to merge as the plot evolves and they finally meet each other in the book's ending.

The director of The Hidden Child (original title: Tyskungen), Per Hanefjord, uses the same narrative technique, as the audience is witnessing the story that unravels in the present and at the same time the past timeline where the main characters of the plot are very young, during the years of Second World War. It should be noted that part of the film was shot in is well-known that Sweden took the neutral line and supported neither the Nazi regime of Germany nor the Allied forces. On the other hand, neighboring Norway was at war with the Germans and subsequently, the country became occupied under the commands of the Nazis. This is, in short, an account of the Scandinavian history during 1939-1945. It is that story that inspires Läckberg in this novel which begins with a stranger visiting Erika in her house to tell her that he is her half-sibling, born by the same mother in the 1940s, during the Second World War. Erika initially doesn't believe him and tells him to get out of her house, but the idea has been planted on her head, and when her so-called brother is found murdered in his hotel room, she is going to embark on a journey back to her mother's early years in Fjällbacka. Erika will meet several friends of her mother's that include a notorious neo-nazi who is incarcerated in a high-security Swedish prison who was in love with her, a war hero and author who was a close friend of her mother, and an elderly woman who is suffering from Alzheimer's and seems to want desperately to tell Erika something important.

The plot of the film is similar to that of the book and this is nice as The Hidden Child is perhaps the best installment of the Falk/Hedström so far, and the story is full of twists and surprises with the whodunit element ever-present. The revelation of the culprit in the finale as well as the final explanation of the mystery is unpredictable and overall satisfying. I've also seen the other adaptations by the same producers that stand at a far lower level than The Hidden Child. It should be added, for the zealous fans of Camilla Läckberg's body of work, that there is also another television version of the Fjällbacka novels with Elisabet Carlsson in the role of Erika and Niklas Hjulström as Patrik (four films in total).

Bullets (2018)

A surprise from Finland.

[7/10 · 10 February 2020]

Finland is a country that does not strictly belong to the Scandinavian nations mainly due to its peculiar language which doesn't share many common characteristics with Swedish or Danish, and secondly because of its cultural development that doesn't resemble the other Nordic countries. The same, of course, can be said about Iceland which also has its distinct cultural tradition. We nowadays tend to use the term Nordic when talking about the five countries: Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, Iceland. Nevertheless, there are many Finnish contributions in the ever-evolving Nordic noir phenomenon and one of the brightest examples is Bullets . a 10-part TV show with a storyline full of potential and a cast of noted Finnish thespians.

Krista Kosonen ( Blade Runner 2049 , Beforeigners ) is the main protagonist of the series, playing Mari Saari, a secret service super-agent who mourns for the loss of her friend during a police operation that constitutes the show's first scene. Furthermore., there is Sibel Kekilli, the German actress of Turkish origin that we saw in the early seasons of Game of Thrones , who portrays Madina Taburova, a Chechen woman who became radicalized during the war with the Russians and now recruits young girls to take part in terrorist attacks throughout Europe. Tommi Korpela is the middle-aged police investigator who helps Mari with her work, a man having family troubles and a teenage daughter that doesn't seem to like him. We also have the opportunity to see a familiar face in the role of the villain/antagonist, Dragomir -"Gago"- Mrsic, the Yugoslavian actor that we first met in the Easy Money ( Snabba Cash ) trilogy, as the brutal henchman Mrado, and more recently in Viaplay's crime TV series, Alex .

The plot involves Mari working as an undercover agent in order to meet and befriend Taburova who is suspected to plan the next terrorist attack soon in the Finnish soil. Mari will pose as a social worker who becomes responsible for the Chechen immigrant Taburova and gradually she earns Madina's trust as she helps her deal with personal problems. Madina also has a tragic past which is revealed gradually, through the use of flashbacks, to the audience and has a daughter that she was forced to abandon in Chechnya, more than fifteen years ago.

Bullets is a TV show that features lots of action and plenty of times we admire Mari's skills in martial arts in fighting sequences. But, what this show strives for is to show how difficult is to judge its characters who are repeatedly making questionable, in terms of ethics and morality, decisions because of extreme circumstances. It is evident that the creators didn't want a Hollywood-style action show based on the dazzling special effects, but a series that would portray, as honestly as possible, the impossible dilemmas and extremist actions committed by certain people that we quickly label as "terrorists" ignoring their personal histories and life dramas. But did they succeed in Bullets?

I think that each viewer should answer truthfully to this question and if the response is positive, then the series should be considered as a success. I haven't heard anything about a second season being on production, but I think it would be interesting to see what a sequel season has in store for the main characters.

Quien a hierro mata (2019)

"Do you feel sorry for junkies?".

[6/10 · 30 January 2020]

Eye For An Eye is a Spanish vengeance story directed by Paco Plaza (REC, Veronica) and, even though no one can claim that it is a genre-defining crime/thriller, it both entertains and emotionally touches the audience. When a drug-lord patriarch, Antonio, is released from prison due to health issues, he chooses to live in a sanatorium for the rest of his days rather than his house as his relationship with his two kids, Kiko and Toño is strained. Mario is a male nurse in the nursing home that Antonio will be living from now on and he takes over Antonio's case and becomes his personal aid. But Mario has a tragic past that is connected to Antonio's former business as his brother, a heroin user and one of Antonio's pushers, committed suicide 25 years ago. Now Mario has the ultimate chance to exact his revenge from the person that he hates most in this world and who is responsible for the shaping of his stoic and meek personality. Mario begins poisoning the old man by putting bleach to his food and by injecting heroin to his veins every night. Antonio soon becomes totally paralyzed and even unable to speak so Mario's work become all the easier. The premise of the story is formulaic as it brings to mind many other revenge crime films, but the strength of this film generates not from its over-elaborate plot but rather from the complexity and truthfulness of the characters. Luis Tosar gives a magnificent performance as Mario, lending subtlety and esoterical tension to the character who is also the main protagonist of the story. Xan Cejudo is decent in the role of Antonio while in the case of the two brothers, Kiko and Toño, we can detect a gap between the quality of the performances given by Enric Auger and Ismael Martinez. While the second is measured and solemn, Auger seems to over-act his role, but perhaps this is an unfair assessment as Kiko's role is supposed to be a little over-the-top. I didn't like María Vázquez's acting as Mario's pregnant wife, Julia, but this may be due to my indifference over her character. The interaction sequences between the couple are -more or less- tedious but they also act as an intermission to the events of the plot.

Eye For An Eye is a slow-burning picture that will disappoint those who expect a Hollywood-like revenge movie and fans of Kill Bill should steer clear. Nevertheless, there are some nice action scenes that pick up the tempo, while there is also a certain amount of disturbing imagery and I'm referring to the Kiko's prison sequences. There is a well-placed and effective plot twist in the end but the final few minutes are somehow disturbing and then the film ends abruptly, leaving the viewer feeling a bit annoyed. If I had to rate the movie, I would give it a 6,5/10. It is definitely not among the best Spanish crime film exports of the last years but it will keep you glued to the screen and offer you some very nice moments.